Gravity is a Theory
by Ly Merrick
Summary: Rachel suffers from night terrors, and Quinn stumbles into being the one to help her out. During their senior year, the two develop a bond that grows deep.


Pairing: Quinn/Rachel  
Synopsis: (One shot) Rachel has nightmares, but Quinn doesn't realize this until senior year during a stay in New York for Nationals. What would better be described as night terrors, Quinn finds herself in an unfamiliar position: comforter and confidante, quickly growing attached. College looms on the horizon over the year, and a blossoming friendship becomes lifeblood for both parties involved.

"**You fainted and I caught you. It was the first time I'd supported a human. You had such heavy bones. I put myself between you and gravity. Impossible."**  
Elizabeth Knox_, The Vintner's Luck_

i.

In the middle of the night, Rachel's sharp cry woke Quinn from a deep sleep. Around them lay bodies – Tina in the space between Quinn's bed and the bed that Brittany and Santana had shared, Mercedes on the pull-out couch, Zizes somewhere nearby (likely in the adjoining boy's room). It was Rachel laying on the air mattress nearby that visibly stirred. In the peering moonlight, there seemed to be a light sheen of sweat on the brunette's forehead and shivering arms.

Quinn sat up slowly, her expression contorted most likely into something unpleasant, but her irritation melted when she saw Rachel bury her face in her hands and let out barely audible noises of distress. She hadn't even seemed to notice that she'd woken anyone. Hesitation weighted Quinn's ability to react, but there was a curious ache as soon as Rachel's shoulders slumped forward. There were definitely sobbing noises coming from behind Rachel's hands. Still, no one else stirred.

Rachel darted from her place on the air mattress and into the nearby bathroom. The door closed and there was a brief _click _as she turned the light on. The crying was audible even from a distance, but just barely.

The door wasn't locked; Quinn pressed on the handle just enough for the hinges to protest, and as she slipped in and shut the door behind her she was confronted by Rachel's red eyes and startled look.

"Quinn – what – what if I had been indecent?"

"Ignoring the obvious," Quinn rasped sleepily, gave Rachel a questioning look. "I was checking on you. I don't really know _why _but –"

"I'm fine." Rachel laughed half-heartedly and turned her back to Quinn, visibly trembling. Turning on the water, she tried to cover her reddened face and eyes with a splash of cold water. "No need to check on me."

This was unfamiliar territory (not the bathroom – _that _was familiar for them); Quinn didn't really know how to approach Rachel right now, but she knew she had to do something. So she remained silent. That seemed the most reasonable thing. The taller girl reached a hand forward, pressed her palm to Rachel's shoulder, green eyes searching the reflection in front of her. Rachel's brown eyes darted upward, fearful.

"It happens sometimes." Rachel excused. She made no effort to brush off Quinn's comfort, so the blonde took it as permission to move a little closer. It was curious to say the least, the way Quinn felt warm all over when she touched Rachel this delicately, as if Rachel were breakable. "I don't have my sleeping medication with me; when I don't have it, I don't sleep well." Her voice was just a little breathy as she dabbed a towel over her damp face.

Quinn's fingers delicately ran from Rachel's shoulder, down her tricep, and to cup Rachel's elbow. Weirdly enough, she wanted to hug Rachel. She wanted the brunette to stop shaking. She let Rachel talk, because it seemed the talking helped alleviate something. It satisfied something in the shorter girl.

"I'm sorry I woke you."

Quinn shook her head, gave a lopsided, quiet smile. "It's cool. Are you going to be okay?"

Doubt flickered over Rachel's countenance. She was still trembling.

"Wow. That bad, huh?"

Rachel nodded ashamedly, eyes cast down from the mirror now as she fidgeted with the towel in her hands.

Quinn moved in the small bathroom space, her hips shifting in the cramped area next to Rachel so that they were shoulder to shoulder. She dropped her hand from Rachel's elbow, reached beside her and took the towel from Rachel. Their reflections regarded each other for a long moment, Quinn's heart doing a double-thump as Rachel seemed to lean against her shoulder a little bit.

She didn't know what to do, so she reached around Rachel's shoulders, her other hand closing in on Rachel's hip. She tugged the shorter girl into her arms, feeling the stiffness of Rachel's shoulders as she processed what was happening – but then it came easy, Rachel suddenly soft and pliable in her arms. Quinn felt the hard grip of fingers at the fabric of her shirt, felt the fabric tugged hard.

Rachel still shook, but less. And Quinn tried to ignore their reflections now – there was too much there to process. The way her fingers had sort of knotted in Rachel's hair and held the girl a little closer.

"It was just a nightmare," Quinn murmured, and felt the door knob pressing against her back. She ignored it until Rachel let her go and they slipped separately back into the dark room, retiring as if nothing had happened.

When Quinn fell asleep, she dreamed that Rachel lay beside her, pressed close.

###

They had never been friends. They'd never really even been close. They'd been acquaintances. So when Quinn was deep in the application process, pouring over the requirements of an essay for a scholarship, she hadn't expected Rachel to sit beside her and lay her things down like they were study buddies.

"The doctor won't prescribe the medication anymore," it was quiet, almost a whisper. When Quinn looked up and glanced at the brown bangs and deep chocolate eyes, she saw Rachel's exhaustion. "I can't sleep. I don't know what to do."

_We're not friends. _Quinn's mind ran through this thought, and she tried not to let her confusion show. Maybe there was that moment of vulnerability still between them, like a root that had tangled them together somehow. "What have your dads suggested?"

"Over the counter sleep medication. It doesn't work, though. It doesn't stop the night terrors."

That's what it was. "Does anything make them stop?"

"I don't know."

Silence settled between them, the sound of Rachel's nervous fidgeting like a metronome measuring the time. The shorter girl shifted in her seat anxiously, and Quinn glanced down at her as she watched her fix and re-adjust her skirt three times before Quinn's hands darted out and caught Rachel's.

Rachel's eyes darted upward, nervously. "Sorry."

Quinn didn't let go of Rachel's hands; she wanted – for some ridiculous reason – to soothe Rachel. She let one hand go, but used her freed hand to shift her chair closer to Rachel's. She felt Rachel's pinned hand turn over in her palm, and she squeezed it tighter.

She was holding hands with Rachel and it should've been weird, but it wasn't. She was, after all, just comforting the brunette.

"Help me figure out what to write for this stupid essay, okay?"

###

It wasn't her fault, really. None of this was. However, the end result was the same. Two weeks of watching Rachel go without sleep (apparently only in brief spurts) meant that Quinn was on the internet looking for ways to overcome night terrors.

There were a few easy methods – soothing lights, classical music, aromatherapy.

She'd gathered a few of these things at the store earlier. She'd found some lavender candles, some chamomile tea, and a weirdly tinted special LED nightlight that was supposed to help people sleep peacefully. What little money Quinn had saved for recreation went to these things – particularly the nightlight because the damn thing had been forty dollars and change at the pharmacy.

_We're here. – R*_

The text came in, her phone humming against the wood of her desk.

_Be out in a sec. – ._

Quinn remembered last minute, as she darted down the hallway, that her mother had some essential oils in the bathroom. Maybe those would be good. She tossed them into her bag – sure to seal them tightly first – and without saying goodbye, ran down the stairs and out the front door to where Rachel's dad and Rachel waited.

Quinn had become Rachel's confidante during the whole sleeping issue. She didn't know why or how, but here she was, climbing into the back seat with Rachel, a bag full of homeopathic remedies. It'd only been two or three weeks but the last week, Quinn had lost a fair amount of sleep on the phone with a panicked Rachel on the other end.

This last bit had been Quinn's suggestion; she was spending the weekend with Rachel. Maybe, after all, Rachel would sleep better if she slept in the company of a warm body.

"How are you, Quinn?" One of Rachel's dads, Leroy, questioned her from the front seat as he pulled out of the driveway.

"I'm good, thanks." She offered a polite smile and felt Rachel's eyes on her.

Rachel looked dead on her feet. She had some embarrassing dark circles under her eyes and Quinn felt a pang of sympathy.

"I have stuff – on the light and everything." Quinn was a little sheepish. Although now they spoke regularly, there was still something hesitant between them. It kept Quinn from feeling like this was all a natural progression.

Rachel shifted closer, and between them she read the paper carefully as if Quinn had not already read it.

###

Quinn plugged the LED light in, flipping the switch a couple times to test the integrity of it. In the other room, Rachel was taking a bath. From beneath the door, Quinn could see the flickering of the candles she'd brought, and the strong scent of jasmine emanated from the same place. The occasionally trickle and splash of movement in the water let Quinn know Rachel seemed to be alright. There was a raspy humming as well, and it made Quinn smile.

As much as she kind of hated to admit it, she was starting to really care about Rachel and whether or not she was okay. Three weeks of phone conversations at 2a.m. had started to grow on Quinn, so much so that she kept her phone nestled in her hands whenever she fell asleep. Just in case Rachel needed her.

The stubborn part of Quinn wasn't able to let the walls down or even admit that this was okay until just this very moment. A part of her softened as soon as she realized where she was and what she was doing. Quinn stood, running her palms over her sweatpants and straightening the legs. Knocking on the door, she listened for a response.

"The bubbles cover everything important," Rachel called shyly by way of response.

Quinn didn't look, but opened the door just a little and stepped halfway in, her palm acting as a blinder just in case. "I'm going to go make that tea. Your dad already showed me where he kept the kettle."

"Okay," Rachel's voice was surprisingly soft, the way it was when she said goodnight to Quinn on the phone in the way that – admittedly – made the blonde feel some sort of tenderness. "Thank you."

Candlelight danced, Rachel's silhouette wavering a little on the tile of the bathroom floor. Quinn only nodded her head and closed the door, padding quietly down the stairs and checking the time. Apparently Hiram and Leroy went to bed very early, because although the clock read 9, all the lights were already off. Quinn fumbled with a couple light switches and filled the tea kettle, putting it on and waiting almost impatiently for it to heat the water. They had a neat sort of electric one. It didn't take long for the little _beep, _the blue light clicking off and the angry boiling subsiding a little.

Quinn poured the steaming water over the tea bag, dipping it a few times and setting the kettle aside. She watched the water turn as the herbs brewed, and trotted carefully up the stairs with the hot mug in her hands. She set it on the bedside table, and just as Quinn was about the knock on the bathroom door, she heard the indicating splash of feet emerging from water.

Rachel was toweling her hair as she stepped into the bedroom, dressed in warm sweatpants and a white tank. "That was the most relaxing bath I think I've ever taken." Her skin still glowed warmly, moisturized still by the essential oils.

"Good, it was supposed to be," Quinn smirked slightly. The air between them seemed less tense now that some barrier seemed to have collapsed in her. "I made your tea. You have the melatonin, right?"

Rachel nodded and smiled.

She'd never really paid attention to Rachel's smile before, but now in the semi-dim lighting of Rachel's bedroom, Quinn felt a little surprised at how … _stunning - _

"What?"

Realizing her expression must have betrayed some thought, Quinn cleared her throat, "Nothing. Sorry," her neck suddenly felt hot, and worried that blush would creep up her pale skin, she covered her throat with her palm. She gestured at the bed, "Come on, time to chill out. Let's hope that expensive-ass LED light works," Quinn teased.

"You seriously didn't have to –"

"Rachel," Quinn murmured, taking the towel from Rachel's hands and sort of shoving her toward the bed. Rather, she guided her by her elbow. "Lay down. No stress, remember? Where's the melatonin?"

"Desk drawer," Rachel pointed, scooting under the covers and taking the warm mug of tea in her hands. She sipped at it, seemed pleased with the flavor by the little hum she let out, and glanced up at Quinn. Even in the dark, Rachel's brown eyes kind of danced as if there were always a light behind them. Quinn had never noticed that before.

Quinn pressed the pill into Rachel's palm, getting settled in herself. It was only the night light that illuminated the space, but she could still read every expression, no matter how brief, as it passed over the brunette's face. Amusement was in there somewhere. "What?"

"I'd never have guessed Quinn Fabray would care so much about whether or not I'm sleeping?"

"Well, you are looking terrible," Quinn gave a half-hearted grin, but her expression displayed a sense of compassion and empathy.

Rachel's smile grew as she glanced down at the blonde. There was something warm in it, her eyes soft and a little too intense for Quinn. Rachel was the kind of person that saw beneath masks, beneath the bullshit no one else seemed to be aware of.

It made Quinn's heart race to be the focus of such attention. Believe it or not, she'd made most of her high school career about hiding in the open.

"Thank you – for being here," Rachel's voice softened unbearably so.

Quinn shook her head as if it were no big deal, but really the way Rachel was looking at her, the way she spoke to her, was maybe the biggest deal ever. And it scared Quinn just a little bit.

###

It was Quinn who had fallen asleep last, Rachel breathing quietly beside her. The clock had fast-forwarded to this moment, where Rachel's fist collided with Quinn's ribs. Rachel was thrashing in her sleep and never mind the bruise Quinn would have later, she found a way to gather Rachel's flailing hands and pull her in forcibly.

Rachel woke a moment later, breathing heavily against Quinn's throat and her caught hands falling limp in Quinn's before they slipped around Quinn's neck and the blonde felt a warm mouth pressed near the base of her throat. She felt every sinew, every ligament in her neck tense; goosebumps shot along her shoulders and throat, but she ignored it because she knew Rachel wasn't kissing her neck, she was burying her face there for the moment, breathing heavily and trembling.

It was so wrong to feel all the things she felt at that exact moment.

"I'm here," Quinn breathed, a little winded herself from the blow she'd received a moment early. "I'm here. It's Quinn."

"Quinn," Rachel gasped, her voice hitching tearfully. "It's you."

"It's me."

Rachel clung to her, fingers still clasping at the back of Quinn's neck and her face still buried somewhere in the space of her collarbone and her throat. "Scared."

"You're safe."

###

The next night was a little more uneventful. While Rachel had thrashed in her sleep, it had been minimal. She'd relaxed the moment Quinn wrapped her arms around Rachel's frame and pulled her as closely as she could. Her fingers had curved around Rachel's hip and tugged her close enough that the in-out of her breathing pressed their torsos together.

Hugging Rachel, even in these circumstances, felt like the most natural thing in the world. She didn't want to overthink it, but there was something about the energy that passed between them. It felt like being united with a missing piece, or something falling exactly into place.

"**She was everything all at once." **

ii.

Quinn realized about three months into their peculiar arrangement that she was no longer just there to comfort Rachel. She texted Rachel frequently. She, quietly, let Rachel know that she kind of, sort of missed her. When they were apart, it was Rachel on her mind.

She felt the tap on her shoulder after class ended, turned to find a smiling and healthy-looking Rachel Berry bouncing on her heels.

"You're coming home with me, right?"

Quinn gave a brief grin. "What would give you that idea?" She closed her locker door and began to walk, Rachel quickly at her side.

"But – it's Friday and –"

The blonde rolled her eyes, smiling widely, "Rachel, I'm kidding."

"Oh."

The laughter that bubbled up from her throat was genuine. "What makes you think I'd just stop coming?"

"I just – you know the night terrors stopped and I thought…" Rachel trailed off. She looked embarrassed.

Quinn, suddenly feeling guilty, reached between them and touched a strand of Rachel's hair. "Rach," she murmured, the way she found herself doing sometimes. It was _almost _intimate and almost always made Rachel stop speaking.

Rachel visibly gulped, her dark eyes searching Quinn's face. A nervous smile darted across her lips, "Silly of me."

"Very."

This intensity had started to build up between them and sometimes it was too much for Quinn to process all at once. They fell into typical conversation as they made the short walk to Rachel's house – since Hiram and Leroy were gone for the weekend – and it was easy enough to forget any lingering questions about the tension in the air.

Their friendship had become commonplace. Of course, whispers had passed between different people in the beginning, but now it was just natural – wherever Quinn was, Rachel was. Wherever Rachel sat, Quinn sat beside her. They seemed a match. Their eyes followed the same path, frequently, like two individuals who shared a single thought, the same mind; the shared a fusion of sorts. It was weird, but it had just happened that way.

They didn't always have to speak to convey feelings or commentary. All Rachel had to do was give Quinn a look and Quinn would feel amusement bubble up from her throat. In times of need, Quinn frequently sought out those very expressive brown eyes.

Everything was ready in the basement – pillows, two enormous comforters. They'd decided this weekend should be something fun. It would be a sort of private celebration of Rachel's seeming defeat of her night terrors. There was already a stack of movies near the large LED TV on the wall, and Quinn felt a sort of childlike excitement as she sprawled out on Rachel's couch.

"It's kind of nice the house is all ours. I mean, I love my fathers but sometimes –"

Quinn grinned, "I know. They can be a little bit like mother hens."

Chiming laughter was the reward for that particular comment. Rachel grabbed the remote and pushed at Quinn's legs. The blonde lifted them momentarily, long enough for Rachel to sit down. She rested her calves on Rachel's thighs and the brunette didn't seem to mind.

More often than not, particularly of late, Quinn found herself watching Rachel in a discerning sort of way. It was as if she was learning all she could about Rachel by noting her body language, the various muscle movements in her neck, her hands.

"Quinn, watch the movie," Rachel scolded without looking across at the blonde.

"You're more interesting."

The former Cheerio found herself saying more things like this and it was disconcerting at first, but now it felt honest. Rachel, however, was still consistently surprised. Her fingers briefly trailed over Quinn's calves as she looked over at her, a questioning tilt to her eyebrows. Her chest heaved ever so slightly. "Why do you say things like that?"

Quinn shrugged a shoulder, her expression turning just a little more serious. "I don't think about them before I say them."

Rachel fidgeted nervously, her fingers sometimes tapping Quinn's knees, her thighs. Eventually Quinn fell to watching the movie, trying her best to make sure that Rachel was comfortable. There was something about Quinn's attention that Rachel had still not grown accustomed to.

During the fifth movie, after a lot of shared laughter, they'd begun to grow tired and Rachel was in the middle of fluffing her pillow when Quinn shocked the hell out of them both.

She'd just returned from the kitchen upstairs and set the glasses of water down on the coffee table, watched Rachel for only a second, and then suddenly she was crossing the floor and catching Rachel's jaw with her hands.

And then Quinn kissed her. There was no thought involved. She heard the little surprised breath sucked in between Rachel's lips right as they'd met Quinn's. It was a luxuriating kiss that had Quinn's heart jumping into her throat and her hips pressing forward.

She wasn't quite sure how long it lasted, but she was panting against Rachel's mouth, unwilling to break apart just yet; her forehead rested against Rachel's and she felt the warmth, smelled the vanilla sweetness of the candy Rachel had just eaten moments earlier.

"Why did you do that?"

Quinn didn't have an answer. She was scared of the answer she really wanted to give. After all, she was too young. They were just about to go off to college. They'd spent years disliking one another. There were so many reasons why this was unexpected and why Quinn should be afraid of the fact that Rachel Berry matched her needs on every wavelength. Even the physical ones, apparently.

Rachel's fingers tangled in Quinn's shortened hair, tugged the taller girl down just enough, and crushed their lips together again. "Tell me."

"I'm scared," Quinn responded honestly, her voice trembling like Rachel's did after night terrors.

"Of what?"

"Having you, then losing you," she wasn't sure where the words came from.

Rachel whimpered, again closing the space as she pressed her lips to Quinn's. When they broke away once more, the shorter girl pressed her lips to Quinn's throat, the side of her neck, her jaw-line. "Quinn," she had heard her name spoken by Rachel so many times. Only a handful of times had it been spoken like this: with love and intention. "Quinn," another kiss to her throat, fingers tracing wherever her lips were not, "I'm here."

"I don't know how this happened."

Rachel laughed, the weight of tearfulness in it. "Me either." Her eyes shone emotionally, Quinn noticed, as they pulled apart to examine one another as if to make sure that this was a real thing that was happening.

Quinn could see 30-year-old Rachel, future-Rachel, in the way the brunette was looking at her. She could see _a _future, could see some time from now when Quinn came home from a long day of work or was pissed off about some unfortunate encounter at a coffee shop, Rachel looking at her this exact way as she comforted her.

Rachel seemed to see something similar. Her fingers traced Quinn's cheeks, cupped her jaw. This was the only event in Quinn's life that seemed to have gravity to it, the weight of it real and permanent. Even if it had not happened this exact same way, at this exact same time, it would have happened. Rachel was – Quinn suddenly understood – a part of her.

She didn't want to utter those very serious words just yet, so she leaned down and brushed her lips over Rachel's – at first softly, and then with force behind them. Rachel responded with a quiet moan, her fingers twitching as they grasped Quinn's hoodie.

Tugging Rachel's torso against her own, she felt her heart racing and her lower-belly burning in that tell-tale way. She was very aware of Rachel's person, of the way her chest heaved against Quinn and the way her hips were moving sort of like a wave, Rachel increasingly in control of this.

At some point, Quinn had to force herself to cool things down, at least for tonight. She wanted this, but she knew that recklessness would get them nowhere. She wanted it to be right.

###

The tentative nature of their _dating _situation shifted into a new paradigm after graduation. Rachel had told Quinn all about her and Kurt's plan to get a cheap loft in New York and begged Quinn to come with. Quinn, still undecided about schools, had said she'd think about it. She'd spent the last two days and the better part of the Glee club graduation party thinking about it. It wasn't until she'd driven them both back to Rachel's house that she'd announced to Rachel that she'd come to New York with her.

It was apparently the perfect aphrodisiac, because suddenly Rachel was pushing her onto the basement couch and straddling her. Rachel's kisses were normally searing, but this one was especially so. Her hips her rocking down into Quinn's and her hands were absolutely _everywhere. _Quinn didn't really realize how far this was going until she felt a warm hand encompass her left breast and delicate fingertips graze her right.

"_Jesus,_" Quinn breathed against Rachel's mouth. She groaned a moment later, when Rachel's teeth tugged at her bottom lip. "Are you sure you're ready, Rach?"

Rachel answered her by slipping a hand from beneath Quinn's shirt and forcefully pulling Quinn's hand from her hip. Quinn wasn't sure what she was doing until her hand was being shoved down, and down, her fingertips grazing warmth and then wetness.

Shock enveloped her, because she realized Rachel had answered her by shoving Quinn's hand to the place that most indicated how "ready" the brunette was. Her whole body hummed in arousal as she finally managed to get a hold of her senses and do what she most desired. It was slow at first, her fingers grazing and circling Rachel's eager nub, their mouths crashing together over and over again, hot breath exhaled in between.

Rachel's hips rocked with every spark of contact, enough to drive Quinn on. She suddenly realized the brunette had given _her _control – so she took advantage of it. She slipped her hand away only briefly, grabbing Rachel by the hips and laying her on the couch, spreading olive-skinned thighs further apart and returning her hungry touch soon after.

Slipping a digit inside Rachel was intense. It took everything in Quinn not to groan herself, the blonde dipping her head against Rachel's neck as she felt Rachel tense at first, then slowly begin to rock her hips into the loving touch. It was easier to slip another in moments later, Quinn finding a natural rhythm and pressing her own hips downward each time, finding her whole body responsive to Rachel's arousal.

"F—_fuck,_" Rachel hissed as her hips bucked. There was a bundle of muscles that twitched against Quinn's fingers as she insisted, her own hips canting downward in quickening rhythm. She leaned up just enough to catch Rachel's hooded gaze, fucking Rachel faster as she caught her mouth in a passionate kiss. The moans and whimpers coming from the brunette made Quinn's arousal very intensely aural. "Don't stop," Rachel pleaded into the kiss, breath heaving from her chest as she finally broke away. Her fingers raked over Quinn's shoulders and held tight, Quinn's body pressing down heavier onto Rachel's.

She wasn't sure how long their coupling lasted, but when she thought they'd finished, it was Rachel who snatched control back. The brunette had barely finished trembling after her first real orgasm but she was already reaching up to strip Quinn's shirt off, her bra, and Rachel raised the stakes by taking a nipple hotly between her teeth, teasing it with the tip of her tongue and then – _oh _too much.

Quinn couldn't see straight. She wasn't expecting it to feel quite so intense but the moment Rachel slipped her hand lower, pressed inside and matched the eager pace of Quinn's breathing, her world spun completely out of focus. She saw white, because she didn't know that it could feel _that _good to have someone's touch quickening inside her, insisting against parts of her that had never been insisted against. She wasn't sure if she'd said a word – though vulgar moans must have erupted from her throat at Rachel's urging because _lord _it felt good at have Rachel's very skilled fingers down there.

Unsure of how much later, but quite certain of the fact it was long enough to develop a light sheen of sweat on her body, Quinn's vision went white and Rachel's name was spilling from her mouth almost tearfully.

Tears did in fact spring up in her eyes, and she tugged Rachel into a loving kiss.

When they came down, settled against one another breathlessly, Quinn found herself laughing. "That must have been bribery to make sure that I'm always around to keep the night terrors away, right?"

Rachel laughing into her neck was the only reward she needed.


End file.
